When Milo opened his blurry eyes at a persistent shaking, he groaned. But the second he saw who it was, his gaze snapped open in disbelief. Turning in his bed, he groggily stared at the people invading his house.

  "Ugh, I must still be drunk," Milo slurred. "I see my sister and her shitty ex."

  Kaden's amiable smile dropped.

  Lina's lips curled in amusement. She patted at his shoulders and tried to get him into a sitting stance.

  "Up you go," Lina urged at him and when he reluctantly did so, she placed headache pills into his palm.

  "Thanks, mom," Milo sarcastically murmured, chugging down the pills and water. Afterwards, he sighed, but knew the results would take a while to kick in. Tiredly swiping at his eyes to keep them awake, he realized this wasn't a dream.

  "Please tell me you guys didn't get back together," Milo complained to his older sister with a slight scowl.

  "I should've left him slumped in the club and robbed by the women," Kaden muttered under his breath.

  "He's just a stalker. Ignore him, Milo," Lina said whilst taking the cup of water from Milo's grasp.

  Milo eyed Kaden with displeasure. He twisted his face into a grimace. Glancing around, he began to search for something.

  "Are you looking for new clothes?" Lina asked, already approaching the closet to get him his pajamas.

  "No, my baseball bat. I want to hit something," Milo stated.

  Lina opened his closet doors where a baseball bat just so happened to fall out. She let out a laugh and picked it up, the wooden material humoring her.

  "Swing for the face," Lina recommended, tossing the bat towards the bed whilst she dug for his pajamas. When she saw the cartoon print, she instantly pulled out the matching set.

  "Seriously, a grown adult and you're still wearing a cartoon," Lina sighed. "I can't say much, I'm the same."

  Kaden's brows shot up. Now, that was something he didn't know. He never recalled her wearing such childish things.

  WHOOSH!

  Kaden caught the bat with his hand. The impact caused his hair to flutter. He yanked the weapon out of the boy, let out a scoff, and tossed it to the ground.

  "You swing like the pubescent boy you are," Kaden remarked, snatching the pajamas out of Lina's grasp. "Stop babying a grown adult."

  Lina glared at him. "What's it to you? Stop trespassing and overstaying your welcome."

  Lina yanked Milo's clothes back and settled them at his bedside. After all the years of Milo caring for Lina, she decided to resume her older sister duties. Without warning, Milo chucked his shirt off and began to change.

  "I still don't understand what you see in him," Milo reminded his sister who was already making her way outside.

  "Someone clearly hasn't looked into a mirror," Kaden returned. He trailed after Lina, ignoring Milo's snide glare.

  Milo wondered if Kaden realized how he looked right now. The almighty followed Lina like a lost puppy.

  "I want you out."

  "Out of what?" Kaden said, unpacking the ingredients over the large black countertops. His attention briefly swept over the apartment that was spacious and empty, but surprisingly well-furnished.

  Kaden could see refinements of Lina within the black and white decoration. There were a few pieces of colorful art that Milo would never purchase. Specifically, the bright green soap dispenser by the sink, or the cheerful yellow cutting board.

  "You shouldn't be here," Lina argued, snatching the onion from his grasp and shoving him with her hips.

  Lina began to prepare the ingredients for the soup and bread. Kaden began to dig through the cupboards until he eventually found the pots and pans. Then, he took the bread and began preparations.

  "I mean it," Lina insisted, dropping her knife to see he was picking up a serrated one for bread.

  "I own this entire building."

  Lina froze. "No, you don't."

  "You'd be surprised by how much of Ritan I own," Kaden calmly explained. He began to slice through the freshly baked baguette. He could feel her stare boring a hole through his skull. Holding back a smirk, he knew he hit a nerve.

  "Your family may own the city next over, but Ritan is my territory," Kaden deadpanned.

  Lina's eyes flashed. She knew Ritan wasn't the Yang family regions. She just hated to hear it from his mouth. Holding back a complaint, she debated the idea of moving Milo out of this apartment. But then that wouldn't be fair to him, and many of his friends lived on different floors of this building.

  Grumbling complaints under her breath, Lina began to chop the ingredients.

  "No amount of cursing will change the truth, dove," Kaden reminded her in a cocky voice, rubbing salt onto her wounds. He'd rather her not lick at her injuries through insults, as humorous as it was.

  "Just you wait," Lina stated. "One day, I'm going too—"

  "All that I own, you can have."

  THUD!

  Lina raised her head to see Milo had knocked into something. His eyes were wide with shock. Milo's attention snapped to Kaden, surprised by the grown man's confessions.

  "There is no bigger thigh to hug than Kaden DeHaven," Milo mumbled, shaking his head in disbelief.

  "How are you feeling?" Lina asked, settling her knife down to take a good look at him.

  Milo offered her a wry smile. He hated how well the two of them fitted behind the countertops. He resembled a son interrupting his parents bickering in the kitchen. Their chemistry always made him puke.

  "Could be better," Milo said.

  "I'll have the place investigated," Kaden stated. "Those drugs won't be distributed in Ritan, soon."

  Lina deeply frowned. So the tip to the police was useless? Unfortunately, this was a help that Lina couldn't resist. Only Kaden would have the power and resources to get to the bitter roots. Keeping quiet over the ordeal, she continued to prepare and chop the ingredients. The entire time, she eyed the glass container of chicken broth made by Kaden.

  "He doesn't eat chives," Lina suddenly said to Kaden, wondering why the ingredients were even there.

  "No, but you do," Kaden reminded, scraping the herb into a different bowl.

  Lina blinked in disbelief. She finally realized there were two bowls of tomatoes, one catered to Milo's taste, and the other to hers. She gawked at his observation.

  "I hate to admit he's doing everything right, as a man," Milo huffed, peering into the bowl as well.

  Kaden's lips twitched. The siblings had similar reactions. Standing side by side, Lina and Milo appeared closely related. If they were apart, it was hard to tell. Lina resembled her mother, Evelyn, and Milo resembled his father, Linden.

  "I don't like bruschetta," Lina said, taking the bowl and ready to dump it into the soup, so that she didn't have to eat it. Once boiled, the chives would practically be gone and sunken into the soup.

  "Lies," Kaden chided, grabbing her elbow. "I know all of your likes and dislikes, dove…… Do not try to trick me, it'll never work."